Diary of Guarding Monster Girls

And just when he thought of this, he discovered another thing: the walls of lake water on both sides were rapidly lowering.

In just a moment, the entire lake had completely dried up and disappeared, leaving only a deep, mysterious hollow in the center, leading who knows where.

He suddenly had a realization.

All the way here, he had been so peaceful, without encountering any attacks existing in the other mists... it seemed not because he was lucky enough.

But because he had the protection of a Divine Spirit!

Steven's heart was increasingly grateful to that God, and his faith in Him grew more devout!

"Praise My Lord!"

"You are..."

He wanted to say a few more words like the priests he had seen before, praising the Divine Spirit while praising the respectable name of God or something.

But when it came to the mouth, he got the words stuck in his throat.

The idea was good.

But the problem was—he didn't know what to say.

He didn't even know the true identity of the Divine Spirit, didn't know what to praise.

Helpless, Steven could only keep repeating the same sentence.

"Praise My Lord, praise My Lord, praise My Lord..."

Thus…

An extremely bizarre scene appeared in the eyes of outsiders.

In the silent mist, a weak and weary middle-aged man strained his voice, shouting with a devout face:

"Praise My Lord!"

"Praise My Lord!!"

"Praise My Lord!!!"

He shouted with a rhythm!

He shouted with vigor!

His hoarse, rugged voice echoed in the mist, gradually spreading to the distance, vanishing into the deeper, denser mist.

To be honest, no matter how you look at it, this man has gone mad.

He went astray after feeling the majesty of the Divine Spirit and receiving the knowledge given by God.

Once encountering such a scenario, without knowing Steven's real situation, no matter who it is, they probably wouldn't approach!

...

["So, is this part of your plan? Haha."]Nenasha's tone was playful, asking softly.

This isn't my responsibility at all, you know.

This is perhaps your own miscalculation?

"Hmm..."

And Herbert felt somewhat helpless in the face of Miss Harmonious God's teasing sarcasm.

"Well, I did miscalculate a bit."

In his original plan, Steven was supposed to act as bait to lure out that guy hiding in the shadows.

But now, the situation was not right.

As bait, Steven was behaving way too "dangerously."

And bait that never gets bitten actually has no value at all.

Regrettably, in this Misty Forest Fishing Contest, the bait itself failed, deemed as fail.

Steven's mental state was really a bit ahead, far beyond Herbert's expectations.

What normal person walks through a forest, shouting repeatedly like that?

Do you respect this forest?

Huh?

"Speaking of which, the Holy Grail's reaction was more interesting than I expected."

When it encountered Steven, it did not choose to escape immediately but first curiously "observed" for a while.

Only after confirming Steven was indeed related to Herbert did it choose to hurriedly flee.

"Is it afraid of me? Or curious about me?"

["Perhaps both afraid and curious?"]

Without any hesitation in her ridicule, Nenasha mocked: ["After all, you did leave quite~~ the memorable impression on it~."]

["Oh~ I said back then, do you really need to be so rough with your methods~?"]

["Now this is great, who knows when we can really have a proper communication with it."]

["Looks like, in the end, we might still have to use force to capture it again."]

"Is that so?"

Herbert shook his head to interrupt Her teasing, smiling: "Why do I feel like it's not necessarily the case?"

["Oh? How do you plan to approach it?"]

"Haha, don't rush, you'll know when the time comes."

Herbert shook his head, smiling without saying a word.

You think this is hopeless just at this level?

Little Nenasha, do you really think I can only use force later?

Naive, too naive.

A little bit looked down upon me, don't you think?

Herbert looked down at the remnants of the underground waterway on the ground, showing a meaningful smile.

"Don't rush, I'll have time to play with you later."

Isn't it just hide and seek?

Who wouldn't know how to play that!

Judging from the current behaviors and attitudes that the Holy Grail exhibits, Herbert feels it is like a foolish deer with low intelligence.

Not good at remembering what it's eaten, only vaguely remembers being beaten, and who knows what's on its mind.

For such a creature, one shouldn't use the method for interacting with other intelligent beings. Instead, it should be treated as an ordinary creature.

Herbert muttered a set of secrets to establish deep emotions with animals: "Scheduled, fixed point, fixed amount, take it away if not eaten..."

"Hmm? What are you talking about?"

Fremay turned her head curiously, hearing Herbert's mutterings, wondering what he was saying.

"Haha, nothing, just some tips for communicating with little animals."

Herbert smiled slightly, then tugged at the twin ponytails that Fremay had deliberately styled.

At this moment, their positions were very special.

Unlike usual, Fremay wasn't lying on Herbert's back, instead, Herbert was sitting on Fremay's butt... hmm, fishtail.

Herbert was riding upside down on Fremay's body.

The roles have reversed, family.

Indeed, this was Herbert's unconventional punishment for Fremay's previous reluctance to admit the truth in front of people.

The Giant Dragon has been ridden, the Centaur has been ridden, so why can't a Mermaid be ridden?

That doesn't make sense!

Ride!

Of course, he gave Fremay some dignity and didn't ride on her in front of others, intentionally doing so after leaving Elda Territory to reverse roles.

The twin ponytails were easier to understand—steering handles.

Moreover, although it was called "punishment," Fremay herself didn't particularly resist the act.

She even somewhat enjoyed it.

Thus, the two of them concealed themselves from view, keeping far behind Steven, while enjoying a different scenery than usual.

...

Steven walked wearily.

After crossing the dried-up lake, he encountered some other dangers on the road.

Sounds!

Like the sound of a harp coming from within the mist, wind chimes ringing from an unknown place behind, the faint indistinct sounds of a woman's weeping, the splash of water...

Those sounds made him very nervous, involuntarily quickening his pace.

But for some reason, not only did those sounds not fade away, but they even kept following him closely... like a shadow!

He had encountered a ghost!

Uneasy, he tightly grasped the wooden token engraved with a dove emblem, trying to draw strength from it.

Finally, without realizing when, Steven suddenly paused while walking with his head down, feeling himself passing through an invisible barrier.

What!!?

He lifted his head and saw the long-lost gold.

The sun.

The sky.

"Walked... walked out!!!"

"Hahaha!"

Staring at the long-lost blue sky, Steven couldn't help but feel his nose tingle.

Thud!

His knees hit the ground heavily as he looked up, covering his cheeks forcefully, trying to suppress the tears bursting out.

But he failed.

Tears flowed unchecked, soaking his beard and chest.

After expressing himself for a long time, he finally arose slowly, his eyes unprecedentedly determined.

"Lily! My dear daughter!"

He didn't look back at the mist behind him, striding forward while muttering resolutely: "Wait for me at home!"

"This time, Dad really found a sanctuary for you!"

"Even without a lot of money, I can build you a Pure Land."

"A real Pure Land where even a mixed-blood can live safely!!!"

He clenched the wooden token in his hand; it was his spiritual dependency and the token entrusted to him by the Lord.

When he returns here holding this token, as long as he activates it, someone will come to lead him back to the Pure Land...

"Eh? What was that place called again?"

Steven paused, suddenly realizing that he seemed to have forgotten the name of that Pure Land, unable to describe it clearly.

The memory existed but seemed shrouded in a mist, leaving only the most crucial information.

"Is this... a form of protection for me?"

Steven paused, then bowed his head gratefully: "Praise my Lord!"

...

Meanwhile, having concluded a secret outdoor battle, Herbert carried the softened Sea Siren Miss, heading back toward the Mist Monastery.

Let's go, mantis shrimp!

Let's go.

The fishing failed, we... wait, when did I come back empty-handed?

Haven't I caught a fish?

Herbert jostled Fremay on his back, nodding with satisfaction.

"Hmm, it's quite large."

"Now, lost again in the monastery."